Canada: 83.3% of new vehicles bought with 4 cylinder engines
 

I was surprised it was that high.

And apparently the market share of 4 cylinders has continued to grow, even after gas prices declined last year.

(That could be a function of the economy though: people scaling back their auto purchases in uncertain times.)

Source: Say so long to the V-8 engine - The Globe and Mail

Anybody know what the US situation is?

Don't know, but I'd be interested in finding out. My Taurus is a V6. I had the chance to buy a Neon at the time for about the same price, but chose the Taurus because the Neon came with a CD player (I use the tape deck for my iPod). The Neon with its V4 would have been more efficient, so I have mixed feelings about the decision. However, thanks to more efficient driving, I just hit my second 30+ tank in a row (albeit again with primarily highway driving).

If I have any say in the matter, my next car will definitely be a V4. Hopefully also with a tape deck.

It probably helps that 4-cylinders aren't what they used to be, as engines get more efficient. A lot of 4-cylinders these days are more powerful than my V6.

Funny, considering we're a country that is truely more apt to "need" 4wd :)
I'm not really suprised - we are NOT the same market as the US. We don't need F150s to feel big and safe (speaking in terms of marketting).

Wagonman, that's a good point to keep in mind with the statement about how things have changed over 25 years towards more 4's.

I've owned: one V8 (from 1964!), two 3-cylinders (Fireflies #1 & #2), one 2-cylinder (Ninja 250). The rest (a lot) have all been 4-cylinders.

That's an interesting article. The increase might be due in part to the global problems, the gasoline spike, or just market acceptance of 4 bangers. 4 bangers are still mostly base models with a few options but they've been improved greatly over the last decade especially since OBDII became standard.

With Ford, they finally got around to building a 4-banger engine for the newer ECU OperatingSystem around 2000-2001 with the Focus(as it's known now) and the Ranger getting both better power and MPG than previous years from the same 2.3l displacement. The 4 banger Ranger was getting 98hp 130ft-lbs with the 1993 year model, now it gets 150hp 150ft-lbs with better effective MPG to the "average" driver.

Since the gas spike the number of Geo Metros cruising around has increased noticeably. I see many Priuses and compacts wherever I go. There are still plenty of big trucks, this is Kentucky, but I see less and less of the older 70's and 80's trucks.

US four-cylinder market share: 37% or 45.6% as of last summer.

Four-Banger U.S. Market Share Rises to 37% | The Truth About Cars
Four Is Enough: Consumers Opt for Four-Cylinder Vehicles | Hybrid Cars

The US is a backward country, but we're improving.